Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1887-06-17

come lae all sectional animosities would be
obliterated. Here go our regiments into
the battle, side by side, Fifteenth
New York volunteers, Tenth Alabama
cavalry, Fourteenth PENNSYLVANIA rite
men. Tenth Massachusetts, Ar
tillerv, Seventh South Carolina
sharpshooters. / have no faith IN the cry;
aNo north, no south, no east, no west:
Let all four sections keep their pecullall-
ties and their preferences, each doing IT'S
own work and not interfering with each
other eoch of the four carrying its part in
the great harmony-the bass, the alto, the
tenor. the soprano in the grand march OF
the Union.
congratulate you, the officers and SOL
diers of the National encampment, that If
foreign attack should ut any time be made
YOU would be ready, and there would be
millions of the drilled men of north and
south, like the men of my first text, which
could keep rank, and like the men of my
second text, that would not miss hair
breadth.
At this National drill, when thirty-one
states of the Union are represented. and
between the decorations of the graves of
the southern dead. which took place few
days ago, and the decorations OF the
northern dead, which shall take place to-
morrow, would stir the Christian patriot
ism and gratitude not only Of this soldlery
here present, but of all the people, by
putting before them the difference between
these times, when the soldiers of all sec
tons meet in peace, and the times when
they meet in contest. Contrast the feeling
of sectional bitterness in 1862 with the feel
ing of sectional unity in 1887. At the first
date the south had banished the national
air. "The Star Spangled Banner, " and the
north had banished the popular air of
"Wny Down South in Dixie. The
northern people were "mudsills" and the
southern people were "white trash" The
more southern people We're killed IN battle
the better the north liked it. The more
northern people were killed i'll battle the
better the south liked it. For four years
Davis would have been worth 81 900, 900, it
delivered on either side the line. No need
now, standing in our pulpits and platforms,
of saying that the north and south did not
hate each other. To estimate how very
dearly they loved each other, count up the
bombshelis that were hurled and the car
bines that were loaded and the cavalry
horses that were mounted, north and south
facing each other, all armed, in the attempt
to kill. The two sections not only mar
shaled all their earthly hostilities, but
tried to reach up and get hold of the sword
of Heaven, and the prayer of the northern
and southern pulpits gave more informa-
ton to the heavens about the best mode of
settling this trouble than was ever used.
| For four years both sides tried to get hold
quite reach them. At the breaking out Of
the war we had not for months heard of my
dear uncle, Samuel j. Talmage, President
of the Oglethorpe university, i'll Georgia.
He was about the grandest man l ever
knew, and as good as could be. The first
we heard of him was his opening prayer in
the Confederate Congress in Richmond,
which was reported in the New York
papers, which prayer, if answered, would,
/ to say the least, have left all his northern
relatives in very uncomfortable circum-
stances. The ministry at the north prayed
one way and the ministry at the south
prayed the other way. No use in hiding
the fact that the north and the south cursed
each other with whitening and all con.
suming curse.
the complete accord of this time. Not
long ago meeting in New York was held
to raise money to build home at Rich
mond for crippled Confederate soldiers,
and was presided over by man who lost
an arm and leg in fighting on the northern
side, and the leg which was not lost SO
hurt that is does not amount to much
The cotton exhibition held not long ago at
Atlanta was attended by tens of thousands
OF northern people and by Gen. Sherman,
who was greeted with Kindness, as though
they had never seen him before. At the
New Orleans exhibition, held two years
ago, every northern State was represented.
A thousand fold kindlier feeling after the
war than before the war. No more use for
gunpowder in this country, except for rifle
practice or Fourth of July pyrotechnics or
a shot at q roebuck in the Adirondacks.
Brlgadier generals in the Southern Con.
federacy making their fortunes as LAWYERS
In the northern cities. Rivers of Georgia,
Alabama, and North Carolina, turning
mills of New England capitalists. The
old lions of war, Fort Sumter and Moul
| trie and Lafayette and Pickens and Hamil-
ton, sound asleep on their iron paws, and
instead OF raising money to keep enemies
out OF our New York harbor, raising money
for the Bartholdi statute on Bedloe' S Island.
itl,gure OF liberty with uplifted torch to light
the way to all who want to come in, In
stead of war antipathies, when YOU could
not cross the line between the contestants
without lighting your way with keen steel
or getting through by passes carefully
scrutlnized at every step by bayonets. Won
need only a railroad ticket from New York
to Charleston or New Orleans to 90 clear
through, and there is no use for any weapon
sharper or stronger than steel pen. Since
the years of time began their roll, has
there ever been in about two decades such
an overmastering antithesis as between the
war time Of complete bitterness, and this
time OF complete sympathy?
| Contrast also the domestic life of those
times with the domestic life of these times.
Many of you were either leaving home or
far away from it, communicating by uncer-
tain letter. What morning that was when
You left home! Father and mother cryino.
sisters crying, you smiling outside but cry S.
ing inside. Everybody nervous and ey.
cited. Boys of the blue and gray! whether
you started from the banks of the Hudson.
or the Savannah, or the Androscoppin'
don't you remember the scenes at the front
door, at the rail car window, on the steam.
boat landing? The huzza could not drown
out the suppressed sadness. Don't Won
remember those charges to write home
often, and take good care of yourself. he
good boys, and the goodbye kiss which
they thought and you thought might ha
forever? Then the inconsistencies "a Won
paced the river bank on a starlight n;oht
on picket duty, and the sly tears Which yo,,
wiped off when you heard groun at Tho
| camp -tlre Sin oinu ~o